


Cork

by SilverMyfanwy



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Coming Out, Drinking, Fluff, Friendship, Genderqueer Character, Non-Binary Arthur Pendragon, Non-binary character, Other, Trans Character, Trans Gwaine (Merlin), Trans Male Character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-03
Updated: 2020-07-03
Packaged: 2021-03-03 19:27:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,016
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24910834
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SilverMyfanwy/pseuds/SilverMyfanwy
Summary: "I’m trans."Gwaine’s also drunk, but not anywhere near as drunk as he’s pretending he is. If he’s completely and utterly honest, he’s not drunk at all and had only had three mouthfuls of the bottle of beer he’s nursingGwaine is dead-dirt sober.And trans
Relationships: Gwaine & Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)
Comments: 17
Kudos: 128





	Cork

**Author's Note:**

> Warnings for drinking and internalised not-confortable-with-gender and implied unsupportive family. Also there's a bit at the start where Arthur has the wrong pronouns coz Gwaine doesn't know they're Non-Binary coz the fic is from Gwaine's POV.
> 
> Let me know if I missed anything!

“I’m trans.”

Gwaine’s also drunk, but not anywhere near as drunk as he’s pretending he is. If he’s completely and utterly honest, he’s not drunk at all and had only had three mouthfuls of the bottle of beer he’s nursing

Gwaine is dead-dirt sober.

And trans.

Arthur’s not sober. He’s making his steady way through a bottle of wine. But he’s tipsy rather than drunk, so he’ll remember Gwaine’s words in the morning. “Oh.” he took another swig fro his bottle. “So, uh, you’re a…” he trailed off. Sober Arthur would have asked that more eloquently, would have asked fro pronouns.

Gwaine’s always been perfectly content with clumsy. “I’m a man.” he has another drink. “But I’ve got a vagina.” he’s probably tipsy now. He’s not normally that blunt, but he doesn’t normally come out to people like this. It’s a comment in passing or brought up during some sort of political discussion or an explanation for the questioning glances that get thrown at his trans pride badge he wears in pride month.

Arthur’s the last person in his close group of friends to find out; the rest either knew him before or early into his transition, others he told through his normal methods. Arthur’s never heard him come out to someone else. Enough of their friends are trans that he could have passed the badge off as a sign of allyship. He met Arthur a year ago, through Merlin, Arthur’s trans boyfriend and Gwaine’s best friend.

Arthur hummed. “Does Merlin know?”

“Yeah.”

“I’m non-binary.”

“Oh.”

“I use they/them pronouns. But only you and, like, four other people know.” Arthur put the cork back in their bottle. “I’m too scared to come out completely.”

“Why?” Gwaine knows he’s blunt most of the time but normally that's for comedic effect. He wouldn’t have asked that sober.

“Don’t want to be received badly.” they push themselves to their feet, falterings slightly, totters over to the sink and puts the bottle of wine in the sink. “Should I drink out of the tap?”

“You might accidentally drown yourself. You need a glass.”

The cupboard with the glasses in is on the other side of the kitchen. Arthur gives it a woeful look.

Gwaine groans and rolls his eyes. “I’ll get it.” he's lost his desire for beer. The conversation’s got too serious. He needs water too. A soon as Arthur’s looking slightly distracted by the spider that lives on the ceiling he morally refuses to vacuum up, he pours the wine down the sink. The beer goes with it.

Arthur drinks their glass of water as soon as Gwaine hands it over. “Merlin knows that I’m non-binary. He was the first person I told.

“I guess your family don’t know.”

“Nope. Well, I told Morgana, but I don’t think she was actually paying attention, seeing as she hasn’t brought it up since. Have you told your family?” Arthur raised their eyebrows. “Woah. That was a pointless question that I already knew the answer too.”

“Do you- is Arthur your name or do you have a different one?”

“No.” Arthur shook their head. “Just different pronouns. I don’t wear super feminine stuff or make-up or even slightly feminine stuff. Don’t’ wear androgynous clothes or change my voice or have secret interests. I'm just Arthur who wears jeans and hoodies and plays football and rugby and drinks beer and eats too many crisps and every other typically masculine thing I’ve been doing my whole entire life. I’m just not a man.”

“How long have you known for?”

“I’ve had words for it for about ten years.” Arthur bites their lip. “I didn’t tell anyone until Merlin. We’d been dating for six months and he mean more to me than anyone else I’d ever met and I’d never wanted to tell anyone before him, so I did.” their eyes go blank, staring into the distance. “And I told him. It was at his flat; he was dealing with emails in his room and I was washing up. I finished and walked into his room and-”

_Arthur sat down heavily on the crocheted red blanket that covered the bed. They swallowed. Merlin looked up from the laptop balanced on his crossed legs._

_“There’s something I need to tell you.” Arthur said, voice thick._

_“What is it?” Merlin frowned and closed his laptop, putting it down next to him. He turned slightly and took Arthur’s hands in his. “You look scared.”_

_Arthur had started to shake. Merlin’s eyes had widened in horror and he had reached out to pull Arthur into his lap as much as possible, Arthur’s face buried in the crook of his neck. What’s wrong?”_

_Arthur wept. “I’m non-binary.”_

_Merlin held them and rocked Arthur back and forth, shushing them. “It’s okay, it’s okay.”_

_“I've never told anyone before.” Arthur said through sobs, pulling away and wiping their face with their sleeve. “I'm sorry. I should have told you. I shouldn’t have let you think I was a man.”_

_Merlin shushes them and reaches out to cup their face._

_“You have nothing to be sorry for.”_

_“I lied to you.”_

_“That doesn’t matter.” Merlin stroked Arthur’s hair._

_“Are you going to leave me?” Arthur whispered, though it came out as more of a whimper._

_Merlin had begun to cry too, at this point. “Never.”_

_“But you aren’t gay?”_

_“Pan. And I love you. I’m never leaving. Never, never, never.”_

He hadn’t.

“Merlin’s the best thing that ever happened to you.” Gwaine said.

Arthur nodded their agreement.

“Best thing that’s ever happened to me, too.”

“He’s the best thing that happens to most people.” Arthur said quietly. “Are you coming to pride with us this year?”

“Yeah.”

“I want to wear a genderqueer pride flag.” Arthur said quietly.

“Are you scared?”

“Yeah.”

“I've never worn more than my trans pride badge.” Gwaine rubbed the back of his neck. “It might be nice to wear some face paint.”

“I’ll take a flag if you wear face paint.”

“Done.”

They were quiet for a moment.

“You’re a good mate, Gwaine.”

“You too, Arthur.”

**Author's Note:**

> I'm silvermyfanwy on Tumblr! Come say hi!


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